Physical symptoms in schoolchildren: the manifestation of a disease?Physical symptoms are very common in children: 10 to 25% of schoolchildren regularly reports symptoms of abdominal discomfort, headaches or sore muscles. Physical symptoms are mostly understood as a sign of illness. But they can also be the expression of a cognitive or affective process. This study aims at mapping out physical symptoms in schoolchildren and wants to explore if they are symptoms of illness.Children from 8 till 13 year filled in the physical complaints questionnaire (VLK-K) and the self-report questionnaires during school-time. Parents filled up a VLK-K parent from and a Child Behavior Checklist. Data regarding the case history and absence from school where gathered.167 questionnaires are useful for analysis. 16% of the children reports headaches, 15% abdominal discomfort and 11% back pain. Children with physical symptoms are not more absent from school than children without complaints. Physical symptoms correlated on the other hand with symptoms of depression.Physical symptoms seem to be more the expression of psychological discomfort rather than to constitute the manifestation of a disease.